Description
Passionate collector and club member—exceptional for sale:
- Mercedes 500 SEC W126 “Series 1”, the most vintage of the SEC.
- VIN WDB1260441A085653
- Blue leather interior (252)
- Metallic paint: Astralsilber 735U
- Fuchs “Barock” wheels on Vredestein Sprint Classic 205/ 70 VR14, plus the original spare wheel never used, fitted with a period Michelin XDX tyre.
- Air conditioning (fully functional and compliant with standards), Becker Mexico K7, heated electric seats, driver airbag, automatic differential…
- 184, 500 km certified as original.
- Full history from 0 km: service booklet, invoices, all MOTs/ CTs, documentation…
- Owned since 2012.
- Featured in Autorétro and on POA.
- Concours condition, fully restored—more than €30k in invoices available from new, including €5k dated 06/ 2026. Perfect cosmetic, mechanical and interior condition. All details available on request.
Not exhaustive:
It’s hard to list everything, but:
- KJet injection overhauled
- Steering box restored
- Leathers restored
- 4 wheels repainted
- Tempomat control unit restored (but sadly the stalk has just failed)
- Converted and fully functional air conditioning
- Braking (master cylinder, ABS sensors, ABS unit…), running gear, all ignition, starter, alternator, belts, oil pressure sensor, fuel pump, cooling, exhaust, etc., etc., etc…
- Headlining/ ciel de toit refurbished, new Hirschmann aerial, one seat-belt arm repaired, etc., etc…
- Bodywork refurbished and polished—no corrosion anywhere, above or below…
The list of all work carried out over time is long.
- MOT/ CT 05/ 2026: clean/ virgin…
- Probably one of the finest “Series 1” examples in France.
- Non-smoker, never accident-damaged, never laid up, zero corrosion, everything works and absolutely NOTHING to plan/ replace.
- Firm price and justified, sold at a loss—unobtainable in this condition with full history.
- Yes, the price looks close to that of some 560 SECs currently for sale, except that a 560 in the same condition will be advertised well beyond €35/ 40k…
- W126s were already complex cars when they were new.
Over 40 years old now, they’re becoming harder and harder to find in truly excellent condition—and the right craftsmen to care for them properly are increasingly rare.
- PS: since some photos, an upgrade has been carried out with front headlight washers fitted (now absolutely impossible to find according to the president of the Mercedes Club de France), and the wood BVA lever has been swapped for an original lever.
- For passionate enthusiasts.
- Viewing in the Bassin d’Arcachon area.
- No swaps or part-exchange.
- Photo file available on request.
- Competitor at the time of the Youngtimers era: Jaguar XJS, Porsche 928, BMW 628/ 635, Ferrari 400/ 412, and US V8 coupés
